Volunteering abroad is one of the best ways to indulge your passion for exploration while also doing a bit of good in the community. But if you’ve ever Googled the phrase “volunteer abroad,” you might have noticed that there are a million options for where to go and how to get there — not to mention the cautionary tales about harmful exploitation.

Volunteering abroad is one of the best ways to indulge your passion for exploration while also doing a bit of good in the community. But if you’ve ever Googled the phrase “volunteer abroad,” you might have noticed that there are a million options for where to go and how to get there — not to mention the cautionary tales about harmful exploitation.

As Americans, we tend to think of Americans as mostly white, middle class and living in suburbia. Too often we forget what it truly means to be a “Native American”. During my college years, I struggled deeply with finding a purpose and passion and changed my major a few times. I finally settled on elementary education and in my senior year of college (part 1), I made a life changing decision to step outside of the very comfortable “American” bubble and travel to the Navajo Reservation to complete my student teaching requirement.

Airbnb is a great company to use to rent vacation homes, apartments, and studios all around the world! And of course, we love their initiative of #weaccept by standing behind diversity. Airbnb also launched a new campaign to offer free housing to refugees and blocked travelers from the recent Trump travel ban. Any company that supports social causes, we support.

Chances are, you have heard the saying, "Don't judge a book by its cover." In other words, don't make assumptions of someone or something based on appearance. Well, it's time to modernize that saying for our Snapchat and Instagram-obsessed, FOMO generation: Don't judge a vacation by its social media photos. In fact, don't judge someone's entire LIFE by their social media photos, but for the purpose of this blog, I'll focus on vacations.

2016 was a turning point for me. As someone who is a huge believer in creating a “vision or dream board,” I knew I wanted and desperately needed more to feel fulfilled in life. A huge component of my project was to embark on international travel and experience other cultures that would allow me the opportunity to give back in a meaningful way. God fulfilled the desires of my heart and immediately presented me with an opportunity to finally have the experience I was seeking.

It was awkward sometimes going to Turkey as a child. The black race is very small in their population (if even counted at all), so seeing two darker shades of children with massive curly tight hair bouncing around on the local city bus in a small town (that you can't even point out on a map) can be very odd. But regardless of my people's curiosity, it was home.

Students who hear about study abroad through word of mouth from influential people like mentors, peers, faculty and relatives are more likely to study abroad. That’s why the Institute of International Education (IIE)partnered with Go Overseas and four other travel and study abroad organizations to launch the #GoStudyAbroad campaign.

OYT wants to know if their followers are interested in a potential opportunity to volunteer abroad. But first - we need to collect some data to help us create a plan. Answer a few questions here! Thank you.

My experiences have made me rich but I am NOT rolling in money in the least bit. Just like anything you want badly enough, you make happen. I’ll be blogging more about this topic at a later time but I budget for what I want to do, I am flexible with my travel, and I’m reasonable. That’s how I landed flights and dope penthouse in Cartagena in just under $500.

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About Us

OneYoungTraveler is a community of like-minded adventurers, passionate about supporting, promoting and sharing the joy of travel among millennials through social good. Our mission is to encourage cultural exposure and create conscious global experiences.